Bidfood gives the gift of Christmas back to hospitality workers

Christmas will be just a little bit sweeter this year for a handful of hospitality workers who will get Christmas Day back, thanks to Bidfood’s Christmas Gift campaign.

According to The Trade Union Congress (TUC), there are around 42,000 chefs, 22,000 kitchen assistants, 15,000 waiting staff and 13,000 bar staff working in hotels, pubs and restaurants on Christmas Day*. The campaign, which launches on 16th October, celebrates these tens of thousands of hospitality professionals who work on Christmas Day and Boxing Day in Britain.

Bidfood is calling on its customers to nominate** individuals in their outlets who are either working Christmas Day or Boxing Day this year (and/or worked last year), that go the extra mile to make the festive period special for thousands of others.

Winners will be chosen via a panel of judges – five leading influencers from across the industry – including Bidfood’s Group Sales & Marketing Director, Andy Kemp; Anne Pierce, Chief Executive at Springboard; Peter Hancock, Chief Executive at Pride of Britain Hotels; Ufi Ibrahim, Chief Executive at the British Hospitality Association; and Andy Jones, Chair of the Public Sector 100 Group.

Six winners will be revealed on 1st December across the below categories, and each will receive Christmas dinner with all the trimmings from Bidfood in January, once the busy period has passed, and a Virgin Experience Day voucher. Categories include:

Hospitals

Care homes

Restaurants

Pubs and pub restaurants

Hotels

Other (includes schools/universities, QSR and B&I)

Bidfood’s Andy Kemp says: “We know our industry works hard to make Christmas special for everyone in the UK, with thousands giving up family time in the lead up, and often on Christmas Day itself. We want to hear about some of the standout individuals in our industry and thank them for their contribution.

“There is definitely a growing emphasis on our sector to play a bigger role in people’s Christmas celebrations. Bookings for Christmas Day dinner have gone up 241% since 2011 alone*** – which highlights the importance of recognising and rewarding our diverse and skilled workforce, and ensuring that working in our industry is an attractive career path for younger generations.”

**Entries are open to those individuals that work in outlets supplied by Bidfood and who are involved in the preparation or serving of food and beverages. Full terms and conditions will be listed on the website once voting goes live.

Almost 14 million Brits intend to visit the pub during the festive period, making it the most popular place outside of the home to spend Christmas (Eat Out, 2017).

Recruitment is on average 47% up during November and December in the hospitality industry (The Change Group, 2016).

Hospitality workers only manage to sleep for an average of five to six hours a night over the Christmas period (Matthew Clark, 2016).

Hospitality staff will work an average of 28 hours’ overtime over Christmas. In the equivalent time behind the bar or in the kitchen, a member of staff could pour 840 pints of Guinness or cook 168 steaks (Big Hospitality, 2016).

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